Into The Land Of the Unicorns
by Neko Oni
Summary: DISCONTINUED ryou lives with his abusive father and dreams of someone coming to take him away. someone does come and saves him. they take him far away, to a magical world where unicorns are in jeopardy, and ryou must help save them!


ok, yes, i am a complete idiot for doing this, but i have started yet anoter fic! the idea came to me, and   
i want to write it down before i forget!  
  
it's just me here this time; yami and yugi are sleeping! in my lap! ^___^  
  
*kisses yami and yugi's heads* *yami and yugi each have their heads on one   
of oni's shoulders* awww! they're both so precious! *chuckles* they learned the   
hard way why it isn't a good idea to eat sticky, chewy foods when u have braces!  
  
*hugs yami and yugi* *both cuddle closer to her under the blanket* awww! *melts*  
  
um.......anyway, this is set somewhat in the past, but it doesn't matter. i was   
thinkig of two of my favorite books when i was in middle school/9th grade; misty   
of chincoteague, and into the land of the unicorns. so i'm writing a story with both   
of them!  
  
this is set at the same time as misty of chincoteage; around 1920's or so.  
ryou is a boy living with his tyrannical father (his character is based off of   
my over-bearing control freak stepfather), who dreams of someday being saved from   
his life of drudgery. he lives on chincoteague island. eventually, he is saved   
and taken to a magical land in in jeapordy. ryou is on a quest to save the land, and  
save the unicorns!  
  
warnings: yaoi. don't know the pairing yet. might be bakura x ryou, or malik x ryou  
dont' know. haven't made up my mind yet.  
  
don't know what much is going to be happening in this fic; i just started it!  
  
yes, i know, i spelled chincoteague and austage islands wrong. yes, they ARE real; they're   
off the coast of virginia- or is it maryland? there's a bridge that connects chincoteague to   
the mainland. it's really cool!  
  
other notes: yes, i know, a group of horses/ponies is called a herd. but in misty of chincoteage,   
austage ponies are referred to as flocks. so i'm using it as well, to sound more authentic.  
  
and a horse with 'socks' is NOT a horse wearing socks; it's a white marking above the horse's hoof   
that comes up to their ankle. if it's longer than the ankle, aka goes up the leg, then it's called a   
stocking.   
  
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%  
  
INTO THE LAND OF THE UNICORNS  
  
chapter one: Fly Away On the Wings of a Dream  
  
The sun blazed down relentlessly upon the beach, reflecting off of the hot, white sand and   
dancing blue ocean waves. The joyous shouts of children frolicking, music playing, people   
talking and laughing echoed faintly in a gentle, warm breeze across the cove.   
  
Today was a holiday. It was the annual Pony Penning Day, when the Fire Company swam with   
their horses to the wild, untamed Austage Island, right next to Chincoteague Island,   
to round up the wild pony flocks, swim them across the bay, and drive them to the penning   
grounds, where the older foals would be auctioned off to visitors from the mainland, and   
some locals, too. This was done to help keep the wild flocks small, so they would have   
enough food to survive on Austage.  
  
Pony Penning Day was one of the most exciting days in the summer, right up there with   
Christmas, Thanksgiving, and Easter. Tourists from the mainland came, many just too watch   
the excitement, and some to buy a baby pony of their own.   
  
All of the island was attending. Well, except for one. Ryou Bakura pushed his tattered   
straw sunhat further back on his forhead and wiped the sweat out of his eyes. It was barely   
midmorning, and the sun was already vicious. The water around his ankles was warm, the   
froth from the small waves tickling his ankles. The clams under his feet hurt; he wished   
his father would grant him shoes, so that it wouldn't hurt. But it wouldn't do to ask; his   
father was in a livid mood already.  
  
"We need more clams!" He had shouted. "Tourists will be arriving at the diner hungry, and   
will be expecting clam chowder; it's the specialty on Pony Penning Day. And how can I make   
clam chowder without any clams?"  
  
Ryou winced at the mere memory of his father's anger. He sighed and went back to work, digging  
up clams for his father. He had already gathered enough; he'd been coming out since sun up   
every morning for a week and had gotten more than enough. But his father was never satisfied.  
He never allowed his son a moment's pleasure.  
  
Ryou dumped his newest armful of clams into the round floating basket that was tied to his   
waist with a piece of rope to keep it from floating away. He then looked up, past the   
sandy beaches of Chincoteage to the wild, grass strewn shores of Austage. His heart   
fluttered as the warm wind carressed his cheek and made his soft, silver hair float about   
him. The secret wish in his heart stirred with the whispering tree branches of Austage.   
  
'Come to us.' They seemed to call. 'We'll take you far away. You'll never hurt again. Come to us.'  
  
Ryou had always dreamed of somehow escaping his dismal home to a magical place, far far away,   
a place where he would be welcomed and loved, and happy. A place where no one would hurt him,   
where he had a father who loved him, instead of seeing him as merely a live in servant.   
  
He sighed; he knew such wishes were foolish and dreamt only by little children. He was about   
to turn away, back to work, when a shifting of the shadows caught the corner of his eye.   
He gasped and stiffened, staring unblinking at the dark, secret depths of Austage Island. He   
had never been there, and had never seen a pony penning day either. But, oh, how he had longed   
to go to that wild island and see the wild ponies!  
  
He held his breath, but didn't see anymore movements. His heart dropped, and his shoulders   
slumped. He was wishing so hard he had started imagining things. As he bent to gather more   
clams, a piercing whiny echoed across the cove, and Ryou's head snapped up in time to see a   
sorrel mare with white socks come leaping out of the shadowy forest. Her lean legs ate up the   
ground rapidly, flinging sand as the wind streamed through her long, wild, and glorious mane.  
  
Freedom. Pure, unhampered freedom. This mare was free. She was one of the wild ones of Austage.  
How Ryou envied her! His breath caught at the sight of her flying along the beach in defiance of   
the oppressive sun's heat. He held out his scrawny arms and gasped softly, almost as if he was afraid   
his voice would break the spell, "Take me with you, beautiful one. Teach me to be free."  
  
The wind changed direction, and the mare's ears flicked in his direction. Ryou's soft brown eyes   
met with her dark, untamed ones. His were dull and worn, well broken in and used to the harness   
of hard work while the mare had never had a harness upon her shaggy, wind matted back. His eyes   
widened, and he dared to do something he had not done in a long time. He smiled, allowing joy   
to creep up in his chest, building up hope.  
  
His joy was soon robbed from him. Out of nowhere, a lasso landed around the mare's neck, choking her.   
she reared, neighed, bucked, and fought back with all of her wild might, but the noose tightened, cutting   
off her supply of oxygen. Slowly, she was beaten down into a heaving, beaten wreck. The mounted fireman   
grinned at his victory, leading the still rebelious creature back to the round up men's basecamp.   
  
Tears formed in his pain filled eyes as he watched as the mare was taken away. He felt as if his heart had been   
ripped from his chest. Sobbing, he filled up the remainder of his basket and walked back home, to the small town,   
his feet dragging, head hung low, and shoulder shaking with his sobs.  
  
Unknown to him, a pair of dark chocolate eyes were watching, concealed by the mysterious, wild shadows of Austage forest.  
The eyes observed the delicate elvin features of the boy, and watched as the sun sparkled off of his heart broken tears   
as he made his way home.  
  
  
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%  
  
  
so, what y'all think? 


End file.
